I. Introduction
II. Character Profile: Mary Magdalene, a Woman Who Was an Adoring Disciple
A. WHO WAS SHE? (see MAT 27:56,61: 28:1; MRK 15:40,47; 16:1-19; LUK
8:2; 24:10; JOH 19:25; 20:1-18).
*Some people identify Mary Magdalene with the "sinner" who anointed
Jesus' feet at the banquet of Simon, the Pharisee (LUK 7:36-50) but
there is no evidence for this.
1. WHAT WAS HER NAME? Mary, "myrrh", a bitter and pungent herb, but
valuable for medicinal purposes and in perfumes.
2. WHERE DID SHE LIVE? Prior to her salvation she was from Magdala,
a prosperous town on the coast of Galilee around three mi. from
Capernaum; a dye works and textile factories added to its
affluence. She was designated by her origin, "Mary of Magdala"
(Magdala means "tower or castle"); possibly this designation
means that she was one of the prominent people from the town.
3. WHO WERE HER PEOPLE? Scripture is silent about her genealogy and
marital status, but it appears that she was free to follow Jesus
and financially able to care for both herself and Jesus' needs
and ministry (MRK 15:41, 16:1; LUK 8:3).
B. WHAT DID SHE DO?
1. She was saved.
a) Physically- she was freed from demon possession
1) she was demon possessed
*We don't know how she came to be inhabited by demons,
those unclean spirits (MAT 10:1; MRK 1:27, 3:11, 5:13, 6:7;
LUK 4:36, 6:18, 7:21, 8:2, 11:26; ACT 5:16, 8:7, 19:12,13;
REV 16:13,14) but LUK 8:2 and MAR 16:9 say that she had
been possessed by seven demons.
a] demoniacs sometimes exhibit physical signs of possession
i] they seem to have illnesses
-- "epileptic" seizures (MAT 17:15-19).
-- being "dumb" (MAT 9:32,33).
-- being "blind" (MAT 12:22).
ii] they try to destroy themselves by:
-- cutting themselves with stones (MRK 5:5)
-- throwing themselves in fire or water (MAT 17:15;
MRK 9:22)
iii] they attack others:
-- in MAT 8:28, MRK 5:4 two demoniacs violently
attack passersby
-- in ACT 19:16 a demon possessed man jumped on and
beat the seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief
priest.
b] demoniacs may speak nonsensically
i] in JOH 8:49-53 the Jews could not comprehend what
Jesus was saying so they accused Him of having a
demon.
ii] in JOH 10:20,21 the crowd dismissed Jesus' teachings
as those from a "man possessed by a demon" and
someone "raving mad".
c] demoniacs may exhibit no outward signs
Several demoniacs in Scripture appear to have mixed
unnoticed among society until they came in contact with
Jesus (MRK 1:23; LUK 4:33).
*There is no way of telling what Mary acted like before
her salvation, whether she was wild or outwardly normal;
but she desperately needed divine intervention to free
her.
2) she was delivered
JOH 8:31,32 "To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said,
'If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you
free.'"
*We do not have a record of her deliverance, only the fact
that she was.
a] MAR 16:9 says that seven demons had been driven out of
her by Jesus.
b] LUK 8:2 says that she had had seven demons which had
come out of her.
i] Jesus commanded demons to come out of people (MRK
5:8; LUK 4:35, 9:29).
ii] Jesus could forbid demons to reenter a person
(MAR 9:25).
b) Spiritually
JOH 8:12 "When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, 'I
am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk
in darkness, but will have the light of life.'"
*Again we do not have an account of her salvation experience,
only evidence that she was saved.
1) like the demoniacs in the Gerasenes she was loosed from the
dominion of Satan and was saved (MAR 5:12-20).
2) at sometime she had called upon the name of the LORD-
ACT 4:12 "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is
no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be
saved."
2. She was committed.
MAR 8:34,35 "Then he called the crowd to him along with his
disciples and said: 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny
himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to
save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and
for the gospel will save it."
a) she had followed Him from Galilee, her home (Mat 27:55; MAR
15:41; LUK 23:49).
LUK 23:49 "But all those who knew him, including the women
who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance,
watching these things."
MAT 27:55,56 "Many women were there, watching from a
distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee.... Among them
were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and
the mother of Zebedee's sons."
b) she cared for Jesus' needs (MAT 27:55; MAR 15:41).
MAT 27:55 "Many women were there, watching from a distance.
They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs.
Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and
Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons."
MAR 15:41 "In Galilee these women had followed him and cared
for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to
Jerusalem were also there."
*she gave whatever she could to further God's cause-
DID YOU EVER WONDER HOW JESUS AND THE DISCIPLES SURVIVED
WITHOUT AN INCOME? MARY MAGDALENE AND OTHERS SUPPLIED FOR
THEIR NEEDS.
c) she continued with Jesus
LUK 9:62 "Jesus replied, 'No one who puts his hand to the
plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of
God.'"
*Mary Magdalene apparently never looked back- for she had died
to her old way of life, and her life was hidden with Christ in
God. COL 3:3.
1) she apparently followed from the time she met Him until His
death.
2) she did not fall away from difficult teachings (JOH
6:66-69).
3. She was faithful
a) she was steadfast
1) she was there at the cross (MAT 27:55; MRK 15:40; LUK
23:49; JOH 19:25).
*she was probably also part of the crowd that followed
Jesus through the streets of Jerusalem to Golgotha, though
Scripture does not specifically mention her (LUK 23:27)
LUK 23:27 "A large number of people followed him,
including women who mourned and wailed for him."
a] crucifixion
i] definition: n. the act of nailing or fastening a
person to a cross, for the purpose of putting him to
death: Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary,
Collins/ World, 1975, pg 438.
ii] origin: according to "The Zondervan Pictorial
Encyclopedia of the Bible", pg. 1041, the Medes and
the Persians originated this brutal form of torture.
iii] Roman practice: this form of execution was reserved
for slaves and non-Romans (or degraded persons).
-- the victim may have been scourged prior to
crucifixion, which entailed being bound to a
pillar and being beaten 13 strokes on the chest
and 13 strokes on each shoulder with a plaited
whip weighted with metal pieces or bone fragments.
Roman citizens could not lawfully be scourged.
-- the victim usually carried a crossbeam to a
perpendicular stake (usually little more than the
height of a man) at the execution site outside a
city's walls.
-- the victim was stripped and nailed (through the
hands and heels) or lashed to the crossbeam, which
was fitted onto the post.
-- the victim sometimes was permitted to sit astride
a peg, which helped support his weight, or to have
a foot rest with which to raise up (to bring blood
pressure back to the upper body).
-- death could take as long as 2-3 days with the
rests; without them or if the victims legs were
broken death would be rapid by orthostatic
collapse (through insufficient blood circulating
to the brain and heart).
-- the victim's crime was published at the time of
his death either by a crier who proceeded him or
by a written tablet (called a titulus).
*this information came from "The Zondervan
Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible", vol.1, pgs.
1040,1041, vol.5, pg. 298, and "Everyday life in
Bible Times", National Geographic Society, pg. 362
iv] Jesus' crucifixion
-- trials- the first took place at Anna's home after
His arrest (the former high priest) where Jesus
was questioned and struck in the face (JOH
18:13-23).
- next it took place at Caiaphas' home in
the middle of the night where Jesus was spit upon,
blindfolded, punched and slapped, and mocked and
beaten by the guards (MAT 26:57-75; MRK 14:53-65;
LUK 22:54-71; JOH 18:24-27).
- next it took place before the Sanhedrin
at daybreak and they spit in His face and beat Him
with their fists, and slapped Him when He was
blindfolded (MAT 26:57-68; MRK 15:1; LUK 22:66).
- next it came to Pilate early in the
morning who questioned Him and found out that He
was a Galilean (MAT 27:2; MRK 15:1; LUK 23:1; JOH
18:28).
- next it came to Herod, who questioned
Him, ridiculed and mocked Him and dressed Him in a
scarlet robe (LUK 23:6-12).
- lastly it came back to Pilate who flogged
Him and turned Him over to be crucified (LUK
23:13).
-- scourging- this took place at Pontius Pilate's
palace (MAT 27:26; MRK 15:15; JOH 18:28).
-- crucifixion-
I. the soldiers at the Praetorium mocked Jesus
before His crucifixion with mock worship, a
crown of thorns, a purple robe, a staff (which
they used to beat His head with): they spat
upon Him; then they led Him out to crucify Him
(MAT 27:27; JOH 19:1-16.
II. Jesus was led out carrying His own cross (JOH
19:17).
III. Simon of Cyrene was impressed to carry the
cross for Jesus as the company left the palace
(MAT 27:32; MRK 15:21; LUK 23:26).
IV. at Golgotha Jesus was crucified with two
criminals (as an insurrectionist MAT 27:33-50;
MRK 15:22-37; LUK 23:32-46; JOH 18:17-30).
*Jesus' feelings were expressed by the
Psalmist:
PSA 22:14-18 "I am poured out like water, and
all my bones are out of joint. My heart has
turned to wax; it has melted away within me.
My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my
tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay
me in the dust of death. Dogs have surrounded
me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they
have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count
all my bones; people stare and gloat over me.
They divide my garments among them and cast
lots for my clothing."
*this was fulfilled in:
MAT 27:35 "When they had crucified him, they
divided up his clothes by casting lots."
MAR 15:24 "And they crucified him. Dividing up
his clothes, they cast lots to see what each
would get."
LUK 23:34 "Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them,
for they do not know what they are doing.' And
they divided up his clothes by casting lots."
JOH 19:23,24 "When the soldiers crucified
Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them
into four shares, one for each of them, with
the undergarment remaining. This garment was
seamless, woven in one piece from top to
bottom. 'Let's not tear it,' they said to one
another. 'Let's decide by lot who will get it.'
This happened that the scripture might be
fulfilled which said, 'They divided my garments
among them and cast lots for my clothing.' So
this is what the soldiers did."
V. Jesus died accompanied by signs (MAT 27:45-54;
MRK 15:33-38; LUK 23:44-47; JOH 19:30).
VI. Mary was a witness of His death (MAT 27:55,56;
MRK15:40; LUK 23:48,49; JOH 19:25).
2) she was there at the entombment (MAT 27:61;MRK 15:47; LUK
23:55,56).
a] Jewish tombs:
Jews followed the custom of burial in natural and
artificial caves. Generally only the rich used tombs,
with the poor using pits, cisterns, caves, and earthen
graves outside their cities.
Tombs were located in gardens attached to homes, within
city walls, on elevated sites, on hillsides, and in
caves (natural and hand hewn).
*this information is from "The Zondervan Pictorial
Encyclopedia of the Bible", vol. 5, pg.772.
Prophets and kings were buried within the city limits;
everyone else was buried outside the city limits.
Wealthy tombs were often cut into rock, some containing
several chambers. The entrance was closed by rolling a
round rolling-stone down an inclined plane in front of
the mouth of the sepulcher.
*this information is from "Manners and Customs of Bible
Lands", by Fred H. Wright, Moody Press, co. 1953, pgs.
144,145.
b] Joseph's tomb
i] it was a new tomb near Golgotha, in a garden (JOH
19:41).
ii] it was cut in the rock and one in which no one had
been laid (LUK 23:53).
iii] it was his own tomb and after Jesus was laid in it a
big stone was rolled across the entrance (MAT
27:59,60; MRK 15:46).
c] Jewish burial customs:
The Jews buried their dead as soon as possible, usually
on the day of death. Embalming spices (if they could be
afforded) were added to linen strips which were wound
around the hands and feet of the corpse, a napkin
usually covered the face. *this information is found in
"Manners and Customs of Bible Lands", by Fred H. Wight,
Moody Press, co. 1953, pg.144.
JOH 11:44 The dead man came out, his hands and feet
wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his
face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes
and let him go."
JOH 19:40 Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped
it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in
accordance with Jewish burial customs.
*Jesus remained in the grave a part of three days as the
Scriptures foretold:
MAT 12:40 "For as Jonah was three days and three nights
in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be
three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."
3) she was there at the resurrection (MAT 28:1-10; MAR
16:1-10; LUK 24:1-10; JOH 20:1-18).
4) she was probably there in the upper room to see Jesus
appear to the disciples (LUK 24:36-49; JOH 20:19-25).
b) she adored Jesus
1) she wanted to anoint Him to finish His burial (MAR 16:1)
*even though Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus had wrapped
the body of Jesus in 75-100 lbs. of dry spices (myrrh and
aloes) and wrapped Him in strips of linen (JOH 19:39,40), a
final anointing of liquid spices was sometimes applied on
the body as a special honor to a departed loved one, and
this anointing was what Mary and the others desired to do.
a] she purchased spices ("aroma") after the Sabbath ended
(MAR 16:1)- in the short time between sunset and full
dark.
*the Sabbath began and ended at sunset, so in the time
of dusk Mary and Mary, the mother of James and Salome,
purchased spices (which were costly) from the merchants
in Jerusalem- since darkness would preclude completing
their anointing task they had to wait for the dawn to go
to the tomb.
b] she went to the tomb as early as possible the next day,
"the first day after the Sabbath", so that:
- she could still find the body in a manageable
condition to anoint.
-she could fulfill the desire of her heart to lavish the
one she loved with the best she had to give as quickly
as possible.
2) she wanted to mourn Him?
*when Mary and Martha were mourning their brother Lazarus
and Mary quickly left the house to meet Jesus, some assumed
that she was going to the tomb to mourn there,
so it may be assumed that this was a custom of the time
(JOH 11:31). Certainly Mary had not been able to freely
express her feelings of loss at the burial of Jesus since
it had been a hasty one.
3) she had a deep personal commitment to Him which made her
sense of loss the greater (JOH 20:10-14).
JOH 20:13 "They asked her, 'Woman, why are you crying?'
'They have taken my Lord away,' she said, 'and I don't know
where they have put him.'"
a] she calls Him "my"-
He belonged to her and He was a part of her, and she was
His.
b] she calls Him "Lord", which means "authority, master,
owner"
She belonged to Him, and she was yielded to His rule
over her.
c) she was a witness
1) to an empty grave (JOH 20:1,2)
JOH 20:1,2 "Early on the first day of the week, while it
was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw
that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she
came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one
Jesus loved, and said, 'They have taken the Lord out of the
tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!'"
2) to His bodily resurrection
a] she was an eyewitness to the resurrection
i] angelic announcements
LUK 24:5,6 "In their fright the women bowed down
with their faces to the ground, but the men said to
them, 'Why do you look for the living among the dead?
He is not here; he has risen!'"
MAT 28:5,6 "The angel said to the women, 'Do not be
afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus,
who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just
as he said. Come and see the place where he lay."
-- of the resurrection
-LUK 24:5,6 "In their fright the women bowed down
with their faces to the ground, but the men said
to them, 'Why do you look for the living among the
dead? He is not here; he has risen!'"
-MAT 28:5,6 "The angel said to the women, 'Do not
be afraid, for I know that you are looking for
Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has
risen, just as he said. Come and see the place
where he lay.'"
-MAR 16:6 "'Don't be alarmed,' he said. 'You are
looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified.
He has risen! He is not here. See the place where
they laid him.'"
-- of His next appearance in Galilee (MAT 28:6; MAR
16:7)
-- of the fulfillment of Scripture (LUK 24:6,7).
LUK 24:6,7 "'Remember how he told you, while he
was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man
must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be
crucified and on the third day be raised again.'"
ii] bodily appearances
-- Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene and the other
Mary (MAT 28:9)
MAT 28:9,10 "Suddenly Jesus met them.
'Greetings,' he said. They came to him, clasped
his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to
them, 'Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers
to go to Galilee; there they will see me.'"
-- Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene (JOH 20:14-18)
-- Jesus appeared to the disciples in the upper room
(LUK 24:36-49; JOH 20:19-29).
-- Jesus appeared in Galilee (MAT 28:16).
-- Jesus appeared at the Mt. of Olives (ACT 1:1-12).
b] sequence of events of the resurrection
*this is subject to interpretation- it is difficult to
piece together the full picture of what occurred that
morning because, while each Gospel account has details
of the events, each is told from its particular
perspective and the only the events pertinent to that
perspective were included in each.
i] Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, and Joanna went
just at dawn to the tomb with spices (MAT 28:1; MAR
16:1; LUK 24:10).
ii] an earthquake occurred, an angel rolled away the
stone covering the mouth of the tomb and sat upon it,
and the guards fainted from fear (MAT 28:2-4).
iii] the two women entered the tomb and saw two angels,
one of whom spoke words of reassurance and announced
that Jesus had risen (MAT 28:5-8; MAR 16:4-7; LUK
24:3-8).
iv] Mary Magdalene left the tomb and ran to tell Peter
and John that Jesus' body was gone (JOH 20:2).
v] the other women remained and heard the announcements
and left (MAR 16:8).
vi] Peter, John and Mary returned to the tomb where the
disciples saw nothing but graveclothes, and they
returned home (JOH 20:2-10)
vii] Mary stood outside the tomb weeping; she then looked
inside, saw two angels, turned around and saw Jesus
(whom she mistook for a gardener).
viii] Jesus revealed Himself to her (JOH 20:15,16).
ix] Jesus revealed Himself to women (who may have
returned after Peter and John came), who then
returned to the disciples with joy (MAT 28:8,9).
x] Mary reported everything to the disciples (JOH 20:18;
MAR 16:10,11).
xi] Peter returned to the tomb again and looked in (MAR
16:11; LUK 24:11,12).
c] the importance of the resurrection
i] the Gospel message (1CO 1:23,24)
1CO 1:23,24 "but we preach Christ crucified: a
stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
but to those whom God has called, both Jews and
Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of
God."
ii] the crux of Christianity (1CO 15:12-17).
1CO 15:12-17 "But if it is preached that Christ has
been raised from the dead, how can some of you say
that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there
is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ
has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised,
our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More
than that, we are then found to be false witnesses
about God, for we have testified about God that he
raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him
if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead
are not raised, then Christ has not been raised
either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith
is futile; you are still in your sins."
*If there was no resurrection then Jesus would still
be dead, as many other famous religious leaders are,
and He would have been proven to have been just
another ordinary man; however, since the grave was
empty and Christ was seen to be alive, it's proof
that He is exactly what He claimed to be- God in
flesh and the propitiation of the world. The fact
that He rose from death also shows the Father's
acceptance of Jesus' death on our behalf (that means
that if anyone is in Christ he is completely cleansed
of sin).
3) she witnessed to others
a] to the disciples (JOH 20:18)
JOH 20:18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the
news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he
had said these things to her.
b] to the 11 and the disciples (LUK 24:9,10).
LUK 24:9,10 "When they came back from the tomb, they
told all these things to the Eleven and to all the
others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother
of James, and the others with them who told this to the
apostles."
C. WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM HER?
1. God commands us to "love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your
strength" (MAR 12:30); Mary Magdalene is a good example of
someone who did exactly that.
2. God rewards devotion: God made sure that the name of Mary
Magdalene was recorded in each Gospel and what she did was
preserved forever as a memorial to her devotion; and Jesus
appeared to her personally after His resurrection as a tribute
to her great love for Him.
3. She was a faithful witness of what God had done in her life- we
need to follow her example and faithfully tell what God has done
for us.
4. She supported God's work with her money and her own work- we
should do the same.
III. What Fruits Of The Spirit Can We See In Her?

IV. Memory Verse: 2CO 8:5 And they did not do as we expected, but they
gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's
will.